Raised Beds

[johnnytheboy]

Hi There,

I'm gonna put in some raised beds in the garden, i have new sleepers ready for the purpose.

Just a quicky, but whats best to fill them with, should i use just soil from the garden or get manure and compost??

Just gonna grow some vegies, toms, alliums etc

Is there any need for me to be ph testing my soil

(sorry total newbie question)

Thanks again

John

 

[RobertRogers]

I'd mix manure and/or compost with garden soil. The soil will help to further break down the manure and compost.

 

[Justin Time]

you can get ph testing kits from garden centres and the like.

 

[Mesquite]

As RR said, mix the manure in with the garden soil but I'd include some sharp sand to assist in the drainage.

Also make sure you dig over the soil that will be at the bottom of the beds to break it up and assist drainage

 

[sandbender]

Some before and after pictures would be nice.

 

[johnnytheboy]

Not much in the way of before pictures, here is the sleepers i bought, and the space where it is going, its partly a a way of saving money on how much stones i need, i plan to put the raised bed right on top of the lanscape fabric.

 

[silvergirl]

I presume the landscape fabric is to stop weeds coming through?

The problem with that is you lose almost all the advantage of having a raised bed (ie deeper soil and free draining.

I'd lose the fabric along the base. dig it down the sides to prevent weeds and dig over the ground underneath before you put in soil/compost and manure.

Good Luck

 

[johnnytheboy]

I was orginally gonna stone the full thing with no raised bed, the fabric is just there from that idea, the garden seems to be kinda developing as i go along rather than being from a plan.

Good point silver girl, stanley knife to the ready

 

[wildman695]

you will find the soil, manure and compost all laden with weed seeds anyway so don't think you are going to avoid weeding, hee hee besides do things actually grow in the frozen north I really would not expect tomatos to ripen outdoors?????

 

[johnnytheboy]

I have no idea, since i cant afford a greenhouse i was thinking of rigging it up into a mini poly tunnel type lean to constructions with clear polyethene and canes, or something similar!!!! It might help

Used to go down to ilfracombe on my holidays every year in the caravan when i was a kid, used to love it down there.

 

[silvergirl]

Any cover will help (so long as it doesn't get damp) I have had good crops of tomatoes up against a south facing wall but you do have to choose your varieties more carefull the further in to the frozen wastes you are.

 

[peatbog]

Try and position the beds to run north to south, that way the sun should go from right to left and cover the whole bed.
Feed the soil, and the soil feeds the plants.

 

[smoggy]

Bush toms will ripen outside, they do well here in the north east but over the border they may need a south facing wall for best results........and temp poly tunnel will certainly help things along as well as extend the season....

Definately add well rotted manure to the soil for the bed as the likely hood is you're going to grow intensively and the more fertile material in from the start the better.......

Smoggy.

 

[gregorach]

do things actually grow in the frozen north I really would not expect tomatos to ripen outdoors?????

Well, there's plenty of people growing outdoor tomatoes at the allotment site where I have my plot... I'm pretty sure they know what they're doing. Not as good as a greenhouse, of course, but in a decent year you should get something.

I picked 3.5 kg of tomatoes in my greenhouse on Friday...

 

[bearbait]

Hi there,

Take a look at "Bill Mollison" and "Permaculture" for some ideas, including the low-dig/no-dig veg garden (if I remember correctly). Also gardening (fruit and veg) in small spaces using pyramid beds.

 

[johnnytheboy]

in a hap hazard way they very nearly do, can always say i planned it that way ;-D

Try and position the beds to run north to south, that way the sun should go from right to left and cover the whole bed.
Feed the soil, and the soil feeds the plants.

 

[daveO]

With my raised beds we put a water permiable weed barrier underneath but then they're 3 sleepers high so pretty deep anyway. I doubt it does much but we had spare stuff to use up. On top of that is a layer of stone then we filled it up from the local farmer's muck heap. We just went up and asked and he was happy to let us take as much as we wanted. It's been sat there for 5-6 years he reckons so ideal for growing stuff in. Full off weeds and seeds but doesn't take long to pick them out.

The beds drain really well and everything grows like mad in there, so much so I had to add mini beds in between the beds to get more space.

They're not quite filled this year, the plan was to grow a load of stuff this year and build it up next year with soil or whatever.